Page 14 - PGA Community News - June '21

Page 14, PGA C.A.N.! June 2021 June 2021

The Faroe Islands, Rugged Unspoiled Beauty

By Don Kiselewski, MCC, provides a unique insight
D.S., Palm Beach Gardens into the Faroese lifestyle,
Travel Leaders characterized with sod roofs
Although it is believed for insulation.
that St. Brendan and a group Although the Danes
of Irish monks first spotted believe that the Faroes are
the Faroe Islands some as much a part of Denmark
1,400 years ago, there is as Copenhagen, the Faroese
no unequivocal proof of believe that they are an
their presence. The group independent nation under the
was known to have sailed protection of Denmark. The
in these waters, and there Faroe Islands were granted
is proof that they landed on other islands in the area; home rule in 1946 and Bryggjubakki Street at night, central Tórshavn. Photo by Vincent van Zeijst
however, it is quite possible that they missed the Faroe function as an independently
Islands completely. After all, the prevailing rain, fog and functioning government under the Kingdom of Denmark. park, the barren landscape defines the true ruggedness that
mist normally form a concealing shroud around the islands. They have refused to join the “motherland” and the European shines through.
These weather conditions average 280 days a year. The only Union. The Faroese have their own flag, postage stamps, and The Faroese pride themselves on having the cleanest
argument for the prior visits from the outside world was the print their own money. marine environment in the North Atlantic. There are,
wild sheep that roamed the island when Landsmenn, the An old Faroese legend says, “When the earth was however, a number of fish farms that raise trout and other
first Norse settlers, arrived in the ninth century. Someone created, the foreman on the job cleaned his fingernails and fish crops that, because of their confined nature, have
must have left them when they departed the island. These what plopped into the Atlantic Ocean became the Faroe created some environmental concerns. Likewise, camping
Landsmenn were gentle farmers who feared the Viking Islands.” Unlike other groups of islands in the world, the is illegal in the islands in order to protect nature, and more
hordes that terrorized the mainland of Europe. Faroes are made up of long, narrow strips of land next to importantly, the freshwater streams and rivers that feed the
Unfortunately, the treeless Faroe Islands are not prime each other, separated with fjords and narrow waterways. The 100 little communities that make up the bulk of the islands’
farmland, so for more than a millennium the people of the land itself has been laid in layers, much like a cake, which remaining population.
Faroe Islands have relied on the sea for their sustenance. produce steep walls right at the water’s edge. Being treeless,
Likewise, their economy has risen and fallen based upon except for a few that have been nurtured in Tórshavn’s city The Faroe Islands on page 15
the waters surrounding the 18 islands that make up this
independent nation located in the North Atlantic Ocean.
The Faroes are located 600 kilometers (372 miles) westward
Scotland, and about the same distance to Iceland, further Experience Dentistry with a Woman’s Touch
of Norway and 300 kilometers (186 miles) northeast of
to the northwest.
Some 49,000* residents live on 17 of the 18 islands –
only Lítla Dimun is unoccupied. The town of Tórshavn on Cosmetic & Comprehensive Restorative Dentistry
the island of Streymoy, at approximately 13,000* residents,
is the capital and by far the largest community in the Faroes. State of the Art & Same Day Restorations
What it lacks in pubs and clubs, it makes up for in picturesque
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a thousand years ago.
The first Norwegian
settlers established the
Alting (parliament) on
this site, which makes
the town the oldest
continuing national Palm Beach Beauty Salon
capital in Europe at
more than a thousand
years old. The oldest The Faroese wear traditional attire
construction in the for Olavsoka, a national holiday of
city dates from the the Faroe Islands. Photo by Don 10%
14th century and Kiselewski

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